Storytellers
by iEvenstarEstel
Summary: A gift fic to emiejemy, who wanted a little fic of the Doctor telling bedtime stories to a little'un.


Storytellers  
©2005 Evenstar

"...and then by the time I was finished singing my song, all the Daleks had run away! The end! There, now wasn't that a nice story?" The Doctor asked of the three and a half year old child he cradled in his arms wrapped in a patchwork quilt made by her great-grandmother. The little girl with chocolate brown eyes and wisps of blond hair stared up at him, completely enraptured by the tale she'd just been told. She nodded her head vigorously. The Doctor cuddled her close and pressed a kiss to her forehead, then rose from his chair and carried the child over to her bed. He laid her down and pulled another blanket over her, tucking her in. He bestowed another kiss upon her brow and smiled at her.

"Sleep tight, love," he said as he pressed the button at the side of the bed to dim the lights.

"'Nigh..." the child whispered, stifling a yawn. She wormed her arms out from the cocoon of covers and reached for the Doctor. He obliged her with another hug.

"Now it's time for all little Time Ladies to be asleep. Close your eyes." She did as she was asked and closed her eyes.

Just as the Doctor reached the door, he heard her tiny voice call for him,"Daddy?"

He turned around and leaned against the door jab,"Yes, love?"

"Dat's not how Uncle Jack tells da story." The Doctor rolled his eyes, having heard this line before.

"Is that so? Do tell, how does _Uncle_ Jack's version of the story go?" His daughter disentangled herself from the blankets that had been so carefully tucked around her and sat up.

"Uncle Jack says dat mummy is the Bad Woof and dat he..." The Doctor held up his hand and she stopped speaking.

"Does this story end with Uncle Jack saving the day?"

"Yes."

"Thought as much. Sweetheart?"

"Yes, daddy?"

"Time for sleep."

"Yes, daddy." She lay back down and closed her eyes. The Doctor sighed and exited the bedroom, making his way to his own room that he shared with his wife. He found his beloved stretched out on one side of the bed, a cold compress over her eyes. He stripped out of his clothes, leaving his boxers on and climbed in beside her. He touched her shoulder and saw a smile appear on her luscious lips.

"Petra get to bed alright?" Rose asked. She'd long since given up trying to pronounce all forty-eight syllables of her daughter's Gallifreyan name and settled for the first two.

"Yes, darling. Still feeling poorly?"

"Getting better. I'm not friends with the vertical state at the moment." The Doctor smiled and splayed his hand over her stomach, feeling the slight curve.

"The dizziness'll disappear during your second trimester, just like it did with Petra. Love...have you heard any of the stories Jack's been telling our daughter?" Rose set aside the compress and took the Doctor's hands between hers.

"It's pointless. Uncle Jack can do no wrong. He's her hero."

"_I'm_ supposed to be her hero! Not some conceited playboy with perfect teeth and a twinkle in his eye!"

Rose snickered.

"It's not funny, Rose! You're supposed to be on my side!"

"It certainly is funny! And I'm always on your side. You should listen to yourself. Jealous of the man who helped us get together in the first place, was the best man at our wedding and who helped deliver our daughter when we were stranded on Telaxian 9 and most important, broke the news to Jackie Tyler that not only were you having sex with her only daughter but that she was also a grandmum. Not to mention never making a fuss about having to change a nappy, always volunteering to babysit when we want a little time alone and now you're pouting." The Doctor frowned and rolled on to his side, grumbling under his breath. Rose held in her laughter and decided to improve her husband's mood. She lightly trailed her fingers down his spine, enjoying the shiver he gave at her touch.

The Doctor turned back over, resting his eyes on the one woman in all of time and space he treasured above all things, save the child they'd made together. The wicked little grin he reserved only for her appeared on his face as he covered her body with his. He was about to kiss her when a sound was heard from the doorway. There, tugging her teddy bear from her grandmum along with her, stood Petrahalleniaveroshagallifreyantidolah...oh nevermind, Petra.

"Aren't you supposed to be in bed?" Rose asked.

"Firsty," was the child's reply.

"You know the TARDIS'll get a cup of water to appear for you if you just ask," The Doctor answered. Petra huffed out a breath and padded over to the side of the bed, eyes locked with her mother's.

"Tell daddy." Rose smiled indulgently, reaching out to stroke her daughter's cheek, then looked up at her husband's confused face.

"Apparently the water from the kitchen tastes the best." The Doctor looked to his daughter and he was certain her eyes were as large as saucers, innocent and pleading. He was utterly defenseless.

"Alright then," the Doctor said, resigned to his fate. He left the bed and the embrace of his wife and took up his child in his arms. After a cup of water from the kitchen had been consumed and the Doctor received a kiss on his cheek for his efforts, Petra was returned once more to her bed.

"Tank you, daddy, wuv you!" the little girl called after him. He grinned at his child and felt his hearts swell with love and pride. Captain Jack might always be her dashing hero, but he was _daddy_. And nothing topped that.

He found Rose naked under the covers, awaiting his return. He closed the door behind him and was welcomed into her embrace.

"Think she's asleep this time?" Rose asked between kisses.

"Absolutely certain," was the Doctor's reply as he disappeared under the quilt and made a trail down her body with his hungry mouth.

No less than thirty seconds after she'd been put to bed, Petra Tyler was out of it again and back in the corridors of the TARDIS. However this time she did not turn left towards her parents room, but turned right. The TARDIS obligingly led her to her destination by shortening its corridors.

Opening the door to the other bedroom as quietly as possible, Petra scurried over to the bed and climbed her way up, teddy bear in tow. The dark haired man came awake and found another person's nose touching his and a sure weight kneeling on his chest. Had this been the first time he'd been wakened in such a fashion he'd have likely jumped out of his skin. However, he was more than familiar with being woken by a restless little Time Lady whose parents weren't quite willing to believe that she'd taken after her father and required very little sleep to energize herself for twenty hours at a time. He also hadn't slept naked in over a year.

"Hey kiddo," Jack mumbled, his mind slowly unfogging.

"Hi, Uncle Jack," she replied.

"Can't sleep?"

"No. Will you tell me a story?" Jack nodded his head as he yawned, sitting himself up and setting Petra down next to him.

"Sure, honey, what kind of story do you want?"

"One about daddy."

"Well, I know lots of stories about your daddy."

"Tell me one with mummy d'er too."

"Oh! That's a different kind of story. Did you know that your daddy is the only Time Lord left in the world?"

"Nuh-uh, mummy said I'm going to get a brothder!"

"That's right. I stand corrected. However, for the longest time, your daddy was it. Now, it all started when he came to London in the year two-thousand and five. He was looking for something called the Nestene conscious, very bad news. The first person he met was pretty shop girl called Rose. It was love at first sight for those two...so sweet..."

The End


End file.
